Broccoli Pickle

When I began cleaning up the kitchen the other morning after making a post modern version of Beef with Broccoli (recipe coming soon) I couldn't stand the thought of throwing out the large & healthy broccoli stems. I also had a cup of liquid from preserved lemons so I thought why not combine them and see what happens. We will see...

Chef Jeff Goes Veg (for one night) —Vegetarian Dinner this Thursday!

Many said it would never happen, but I'll be teaching my own take on vegetarian cuisine this Thursday ant the Center for Living Peace in Irvine, CA. Follow the link below and I hope to see you there!

http://www.goodhappens.org/events/supper-club-chef-jeff-does-vegetarian-adults-2014-05-08

Kitchen Project Monday

I had a rare full day off on Monday so I thought I'd tackle a "couple" of kitchen projects that had been floating around in my head for weeks... 

Lemon curd from "found" lemons

 The house across the street is empty and had nice lemons just falling to the ground so I liberated them... (http://foodinjars.com/2010/01/meyer-lemon-curd/)

Fermented strawberry/rhubarb preserves 

(Based on Mary Karlin's recipe in Mastering Fermentation) This is a recipe that has huge upside. I've made BBQ sauce, Beef and Broccoli and desserts with this product— They've all been great!

 Remember to NOT use the green leaves. They are poisonous!

Lemon syrup

I started this as a way to use the leftover lemons after they'd been juiced and zested for lemon curd. The first version was mostly just bitter. Round 2 was better but still not all the way there. It's pretty good with soda water... More to come.

Asparagus vinegar & strawberry/rhubarb fermented asparagus

Now you may be asking, "Asparagus vinegar? Why??" My take is why not? I had a bunch of stem ends so I thought I'd try the leftover vinegar technique. I just strained out the solids today and the taste is already nice. We'll see...

Umeboshi

 

Pancetta & Bacon

Bottling vinegars & ponzu

Interesting thought on recipes...

"There is a demand for recipes. And an even greater demand for substitutions for everything within the recipes, from ingredients to techniques. Recipes are guidelines. Recipes show the way. How and why you make changes will determine the outcome. Is it motivated by a need to be creative? Is it an allergy? Is it a lack of ingredients? Is it a shortage of time? And before you start ripping apart a recipe, you may look for an alternative. The recipe you want may already exist, it just takes a little more time to find it." 

                 —Aki Kamozawa & H. Alexander Talbot 

                        http://blog.ideasinfood.com